DRAINAGE. 1 1 9 



the Acts of Parliament which have been recently passed 

 for advancing public, and facilitating the advance of pri- 

 vate, money on the security of lands to be improved by 

 draining. They mark the strong hold which the subject 

 has on the minds of agriculturists. Both the Acts and the 

 evidence on which they are founded will be interesting to 

 those landowners who require CBS alienum to assist in carry- 

 ing out their improvements. 



One word with our readers before we part. They may 

 dislike the terms to the use of which we have been driven, 

 and we are by no means unconscious of their imperfections ; 

 but we hope that we have so limited them by definition as 

 to remove much of their ambiguity. Our purpose has been 

 to bring, in a connected view, before them the objects and 

 the advantages of thorough-draining, and to explain in a 

 popular way the principles on which those objects are 

 carried out and those advantages are attained. That to 

 remove water, which is either injurious to vegetation or 

 obstructive to agricultural operations, is one object of 

 draining, is patent to every one. That if it be removed 

 by superficial discharge it will carry off with it elements 

 beneficial to vegetation, because they form the most soluble 

 part of soils, no one will doubt, though he may not have 

 fully realized to himself what very hateful things furrows, 

 and ditches, and water-grips, and other artificial aids to 

 this superficial discharge really are. It requires but little 

 observation to discover that, with few exceptions, porous 

 soils are fertile, and, with equally few, very retentive soils 

 are sterile. But the persons are less numerous who are 

 aware that the greatest object and the most important ad- 

 vantage of thorough-draining is, that it warms and ven- 

 tilates retentive soils. Of warmth we have spoken largely. 

 Ventilation is more obscure. But close observation of 

 agriculture and of horticulture will not allow us to doubt 

 that alternation of fresh air and of fresh water are con- 

 ducive to fertility. It is not unreasonable to suppose that 

 as stagnant air ceases to sustain the lives of men and ani- 



